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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Attorneys argued Monday in court whether the BYU Police Department is exempt from public records laws as a judge weighs an appeal by The Salt Lake Tribune to a records request that was denied.
BYU, privately owned by the Mormon church, contends its police force is not subject to the state's open record law because it was established by the university. The state's record committee agreed, leading the Tribune to appeal the decision to a state court.
The police force is state-certified agency with officers who have the authority to make arrests and use deadly force and the Tribune is arguing it should be treated like all other Utah police agencies that are subject to the state's open record laws.
The Tribune wants access to emails between police and the university's honor code office as part of its reporting on allegations that the university was investigating sex assault victims.
At the hearing in Salt Lake City, lawyer Paul Tonks of the Utah Attorney General's Office said state law is clear that the BYU police department is not a governmental entity because it was established by the private university, The Salt Lake Tribune reports (http://bit.ly/2fLCNkM ). The word, "establish" is key and part of the law, he said.
Tonks, representing the state's record committee, said the committee did not hold a hearing on the request because it felt so sure of the law. He cited a recent ruling in Indiana in which that state's supreme court found that the privately-owned University of Notre Dame was not subject to open records laws.
Tribune attorney Michael O'Brien countered that BYU officers would not have the policing powers like other Utah law enforcement agencies without being granted that privilege by state officials. He cited a ruling from the Ohio Supreme Court that found the privately-owned Otterbein University was subject to that state's open record laws.
O'Brien argued the BYU police department was established by both the university and the state.
"BYU may pay the bills," O'Brien argued, "but that's all they can do unless the state is involved."
BYU attorney Jim Jardine said the police force was clearly established by the university, which is owned by the Salt Lake City-based Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
"Words matter," he said. "To try to blur their meaning is to really disregard legislative intent."
The judge is expected to issue a written ruling at a later date.
Last month, BYU announced that students who report sexual assault will no longer be investigated for possible violations of the strict honor code that bans drinking and premarital sex.
The change, which came after a faculty council reviewed how sexual assault cases are handled, marked a major reversal to a practice that drew widespread scrutiny.
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